Nepal beat Bahrain 3-0 in Bangabandhu, win first int’l title after 23 years

भिडियो हेर्न तलको चित्रलाई हटाउनुहोस

KATHMANDU: Nepal won first international title in 23 years, beating nine-man Bahrain U-23 team 3-0 in the final of Bangabandu Gold Cup in Dhaka on Friday.

Bimal Gharti Magar, Bishal Rai and Nawayug Shrestha scored one each to guide Nepal to the spectacular victory at the Bangabandhu International Stadium. Nepal were the only team to be unbeaten in the tournament.Nepal had won the South Asian Games at the same stadium in 1993 in Raju Shakya’s captaincy while the present coach Bal Gopal Maharjan was a member of the winning team.

Magar had made an early breakthrough for Nepal on the fifth minute, while Bishal Rai doubled the tally on the 87th minute, utilising Anjan Bista’s pass.Nawayug Shrestha, who scored hat-trick in the semifinals Maldives, added the third goal in the first minute of the added five-minute stoppage time. Magar assisted Shrestha for the spectacular goal.

Both Nepal and Bahrain were restricted to 10-man each on the 81st minute as Nepal’s forward Suman Lama and Bahrain’s midfielder Ahmed Althuani were booked after they got involved in a brawl.Shrestha was the highest scorer of the tournament with four goals in his credit. He was awarded the Most Valuable Player of the tournament. Magar was awarded the Man of the Final.

Speaking at the award ceremony, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed congratulated the Nepal team. She distributed cheque worth USD 50,000 to Nepal and USD 25,000 to Bahrain, as well as medals to the players and officials.

Nepal had begun their campaign with a goalless draw against Felda United of Malaysia and defeated Sri Lanka 1-0 with Bimal Gharti Magar scoring the solitary goal.